Jump to content

Welcome to the new Traders Laboratory! Please bear with us as we finish the migration over the next few days. If you find any issues, want to leave feedback, get in touch with us, or offer suggestions please post to the Support forum here.

  • Welcome Guests

    Welcome. You are currently viewing the forum as a guest which does not give you access to all the great features at Traders Laboratory such as interacting with members, access to all forums, downloading attachments, and eligibility to win free giveaways. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free. Create a FREE Traders Laboratory account here.

jonbig04

Spot FX Tips for Futures Traders

Recommended Posts

Some of us who trade futures are thinking of also looking into spot forex for various reasons (small position sizes, volatility, flexible trading hours etc).

 

However there seem to be a lot of horror stories surrounding spot fx and I'm a little tentative about just picking a broker out of thin air. I'm hoping some of you spot traders can chime in with some general tips for us futures guys.

 

My biggest question is what to look for in a broker? There are a million of them out there. Any other tips about trading spot that us futures traders wouldn't know are appreciated. :beer:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Check out a thread started by Cory on this topic of spot FX and brokers. The only other tips I can comment on are that price movement is not a reflection of the last trade as it is in the futures market. Because spot FX is decentralized, it is impossible to ever know the last trade. What you see updating on the charts is strictly a bid/ask change and most charting packages will represent price as (bid + ask) / 2. Also, because you use volume in your attempt to asses breakouts, you will not have this available on the spot FX world.

 

Welcome to the dark side :haha:

 

With kind regards,

MK

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

hey friend

 

i trade with oanda, and do my charting with metatrader 4 with a feed from alpari

 

i'm sure you've heard all kinds of horror stories about spot fx brokers.

 

oanda is way too big of a corporation to mess around

 

(except for news times) the spreads on the majors are 1 pip during the overlap of london and US trading sessions (1:00 EST to 11:00 EST is the best time)

 

my favorite thing about oanda is the fact that you can have any position size you want, 50:1 lev (if you like that stuff), and no miniumum acct balance

 

you can open an acocunt and deposit 25 cents and trade to see if you like it.

 

like i said my favorite thing is flexible position sizing. if your account is 100k and you are only down to risk 2k on a trade, it doesnt matter how far your stop needs to be for your particular setup, you can just adjust your # of units until the distance to your stop shows you 2k (the $ value from entry to your stop is displayed at the bottom of the window where you enter your market/limit order.) it also shows you the $ val to your TP

 

another huge selling point for oanda is flawless execution, the second i buy/sell i'm filled no worries.

 

a couple months ago i was holding a position over the weekend and my stop was pretty close and price gapped WAAAY up past my stop but they still honored it

 

my only complaint is their charting software is really weird. their platform is java based. its cool that you can trade anywhere there is an internet connection, but it takes a long time to get used to their bare bones charting software. that's why i downloaded MT4 and opened an unlimited demo with alpari (both are free). hope that helps

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

to the guy who said something about breakouts in forex

 

i'm a breakout trader and i don't use volume. trade the london/us overlap and you're straight.

 

everyone that i know that has traded for decades and pays their bills trading is a breakout trader in the spot FX market none of this futures nonsense (lol)

 

and i'm sure there are people here who are scared of the tick volume that is available for spot FX here let me post a chart

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

and i'm sure there are people here who are scared of the tick volume that is available for spot FX here let me post a chart

 

Tell us what this "tick volume" is ....when you post the chart.

 

Thanks.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

penny stocks are you joking. reported you equity!

attachment.php?attachmentid=21237&stc=1&d=1275421261

 

 

"Tick volume is defined as the number of price changes. Each time trading moves to a new price, the number of ticks by which the price has changed is added to the tick volume."

 

from http://www.ptti.com/html/help/tick_vol.htm

 

i dont really use the volume for much except for looking at stopping volume on the daily

 

but then my strategy is too simple to mess with abstract concepts like volume trend or s/r

tv.jpg.bf91fa20cd6c17d324b4ea65776f6748.jpg

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks for the responses guys. I'm still searching around for brokers. I don't need volume while I'm trading, I just miss it because I hate using time based charts. I've been watching a few pairs for the last couple days and am trying to get into the groove of them.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Thanks for the responses guys. I'm still searching around for brokers. I don't need volume while I'm trading, I just miss it because I hate using time based charts. I've been watching a few pairs for the last couple days and am trying to get into the groove of them.

 

you cant beat trends that last for years

 

thats why i trade breakouts into the trend, take half off at 1:1 and let it ride without looking at it for days. you can take some off here and there in whatever amount with oanda to smooth your equity curve

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

For what it's worth, I trade currency futures every day. I also intend to trade the spot market and just opened an account with Oanda, which came highly recommended from an experienced trader friend of mine who only trades the spot market. I plan on using Tradestation charting to determine my trades though, since that's what I use for my futures trading. Since I'm daytrading the currency futures, I'll probably be swing trading the spot market. I figure the larger trades will give me a better chance of dodging my broker's interest of taking out my stops but also, will give me diversification.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Weed, whether brokers do that or not (I've heard many horror stories whether real or just perceived to be real) I think you missed the point. In my view, since fx is not a centralized market, I think swing trading is a better approach. You also need to account for spread costs which will be a much smaller percentage of the overall trade profile with a swing trade than a day trade. I would prefer to daytrade currency futures. At least, that is what I am finding success in. That's just me, and that's what makes a market no? I do this, you do that? Whether a broker takes out my stop or not, is what it is. (Or isn't). I can gain greater control though with larger time frame trades vs smaller time frame trades. That's just logical. And yes, I am for real.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

little bit touchy my friend?

 

your broker doesn't care bout your stop. that doesnt mean that there isnt professional money interested in them though.

 

i swing trade that shit is my bread and butter, and is one of the common factors in long term success for the professional traders i know

 

try and relax friend!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm quite relaxed Weed. Thanks for your concern. By the way, do you have any thoughts regarding FOMC day? Do you trade your normal plan or do you do something different? I'm must curious. I've done great on some markets in the past on FOMC days but I'm particularly interested on how currency traders handle Fed event sessions.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

As for broker, I personally use Oanda. Did venture to FXCM for a while but my overall experience is much better with Oanda. The ability to gear in with position sizing makes a world of difference. Pretty much the same feeling as Weed. I use Ninja charting with PFG data feed however

 

Due to the narrow spreads in comparison to many, I day trade through Oanda as well. Stop runs by brokers may have been the flavor of the day moons ago, now, different story. Dealing desks may take the opposite position but so what? I have never seen a massive discrepancy between Oanda charting prices and my Ninja feed.

 

While the cost may be higher in spot FX as opposed to futures, it's all the same to me. Cost of doing business. My spread cost is more than covered and being diversified in trading style (swing/day), helps to smooth the equity curve. You could say that day trading pays the bills and swing trading pays for the future.

 

I'm with Weed again on breakouts. You could sit and wait for a retrace that never comes in the immediate future. Sure, you can offset that by dropping to a lower time frame to grab the retrace but then you have to decide where you are getting in as price moves away from the main direction (ala picking bottom/top). 1-2-3 reversal? An indicator trigger? Another breakout?

 

Going astray from the topic. Hope this helped

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Some of us who trade futures are thinking of also looking into spot forex for various reasons (small position sizes, volatility, flexible trading hours etc).

 

However there seem to be a lot of horror stories surrounding spot fx and I'm a little tentative about just picking a broker out of thin air. I'm hoping some of you spot traders can chime in with some general tips for us futures guys.

 

My biggest question is what to look for in a broker? There are a million of them out there. Any other tips about trading spot that us futures traders wouldn't know are appreciated. :beer:

 

So strange you started this thread, for the last 3 weeks I have been looking into swinging spot fx, I was looking into the micro account that Thales daughter traded quite well to get a feel for the market. I look forward to more discussion on this.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
little bit touchy my friend?

 

your broker doesn't care bout your stop. that doesnt mean that there isnt professional money interested in them though.

 

i swing trade that shit is my bread and butter, and is one of the common factors in long term success for the professional traders i know

 

try and relax friend!

 

Hi Weed, Please can you explain this a bit more please?

 

To my understanding, if I have a position with a FX bucket shop, then they are my counter party. My stop sits with them, and them only as the price they publish to their customers (you and me) is based around what the real spot fx market is doing. In fact, my order never really sees the real FX market - it is just a bet with the FX bucket shop.

 

I say this because you can not place orders for any less than $500,000 in the real FX market. Even then, nobody would want to trade with you as minimum deals tend to be multi-million in the banking/real market.

 

Therefore, to my thinking, there is no 'professional money' to go after your stops, as such participants do not have accounts with FXCM, O&A etc. Even if they did, they would have nothing to gain as the FX broker is their counter party, not another customer. You're not trading on an exchange - it's decentralised and not that well regulated.

 

Given the business model in which a retail FX broker operates then, he can only derive income in one of two ways:

1/ Customer losses. He is relying on the statistic that most people depositing funds will blow it with in 6 months.

2/ Piggybacking successful traders who have been identified.

 

Scenario 1 is the more likely. If your business was scenario 2, you'd be better off posting a job ad.

 

What better way to create a customer loss than pinching stop-loss orders by quoting 1-3 ticks away from the market when near a TA level - where everyone places their stops? Besides, your counter party/broker knows your position, your account size, and where your orders are!!! He probably also has some BI software running as well to identify common behavioural patterns.

 

I look forward to your input - or anyone elses if I am wrong here.

 

Thanks,

 

Dooderino.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Does anybody know if IB run stops like some other brokers. The reason I like them is that they charge a commission. That is the way they make money plus they are a Non Dealing Desk. Theoretically they should not be the counter party to your trade. I been using them for more than 2 years. I use stop limit orders to enter the market and sometimes they are almost a pip over the limit. I exit thru a stop and once in a while I get a fill that is more than 2 pips over my stop.

I am a scalper seeking few pips in high volatility markets. I successfully trades during the flash crash (really good day) with IB. I did not see any slippage over the usual that day and even during high news. One con about them is their report and keeping track about your trades and profits. It is probably the worst report out there.

I am interested in testing FXCM since it is the largest broker out there. I would like to hear from somebody that have day trade both. One thing I like from FXCM UK is that you can be both long/short in the same pair. This open a new set of trading strategies.

For me the cost is very important since I am scalping. Last year I had one month where I paid $5000 in commissions and I was only able to make few hundreds. Since then I change my strategies to look for a bigger profit channel. but If I could get half the cost I could exploit the smaller moves for a few thousands a day.

Another fact that intrigues me about the retail Forex is how the fills happen. The standard contact size is $100,000. So if you sent an order for $150,000 do they send $100,000 to the Intermarket and then fill $50,000 from their own market? Basically I would like to know if there is any advantage by trading multiples of the standard contract versus non-standard.

 

Moscu

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
you cant beat trends that last for years

 

thats why i trade breakouts into the trend, take half off at 1:1 and let it ride without looking at it for days. you can take some off here and there in whatever amount with oanda to smooth your equity curve

 

For what it's worth, I trade currency futures every day. I also intend to trade the spot market and just opened an account with Oanda, which came highly recommended from an experienced trader friend of mine who only trades the spot market. I plan on using Tradestation charting to determine my trades though, since that's what I use for my futures trading. Since I'm daytrading the currency futures, I'll probably be swing trading the spot market. I figure the larger trades will give me a better chance of dodging my broker's interest of taking out my stops but also, will give me diversification.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


  • Topics

  • Posts

    • AMZN Amazon stock, nice buying at the 187.26 triple+ support area at https://stockconsultant.com/?AMZN
    • DELL Dell Technologies stock, good day moving higher off the 90.99 double support area, from Stocks to Watch at https://stockconsultant.com/?DELL
    • MCK Mckesson stock, nice trend and continuation breakout at https://stockconsultant.com/?MCK
    • lmfx just officially launched their own LMGX token, Im planning to grab a couple of hundred and maybe have the option to stake them. 
    • Date: 2nd April 2025.   Market on Edge: Tariff Announcement and Volatility Ahead!   The US economic and employment data continues to deteriorate with the job vacancies figures dropping to a 5-month low. In addition to this, the IMS Manufacturing PMI also fell below expectations. However, both the US Dollar and Gold declined simultaneously following the release of the two figures, an uncommon occurrence in the market. Traders expect a key factor to be today’s ‘liberation day’ where the US will impose tariffs on imports. USDJPY - Traders Await Tariff Confirmation! Traders looking to determine how the USDJPY will look today will find it difficult to determine until the US confirms its tariff plan. Today is the day when Trump previously stated he would finalize and announce his tariff plan. The administration has not yet released the policy, but investors expect it to be the most expansionary in a century. President Trump is due to speak at 20:00 GMT. On HFM's Calendar the speech is stated as "US Liberation Day Tariff Announcement". Currently, analysts are expecting Trump’s Tariff Plan to impose tariffs on the EU, chips and pharmaceuticals later today as well as reciprocal tariffs. Economists have a good idea of how these tariffs may take effect, but reciprocal tariffs are still unspecified. In addition to this, 25% tariffs on the car industry will start tomorrow. The tariffs on the foreign cars industry are a factor which will particularly impact Japan. Although, traders should note that this is what is expected and is not yet finalised. Last week, President Trump stated that he would implement retaliatory tariffs but allow exemptions for certain US trade partners. Treasury Secretary Mr Bessent and National Economic Council Director Mr Hassett suggested that the restrictions would primarily target 15 countries responsible for the bulk of the US trade deficit. However, yesterday, Trump contradicted these statements, asserting that additional duties would be imposed on any country that has implemented similar measures against US products. The day’s volatility will depend on which route the US administration takes. The harshness of the policy will influence both the Japanese Yen as well as the US Dollar.   USDJPY 5-Minute Chart   US Economic and Employment Data The JOLT Job Vacancies figure fell below expectations and is lower than the previous month’s figure. The JOLT Job Vacancies read 7.57 million whereas the average of the past 6 months is 7.78 million. The ISM Manufacturing Index also fell below the key level of 50.00 and was 5 points lower than what analysts were expecting. The data is negative for the US Dollar, particularly as the latest release applies more pressure on the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates. However, this is unlikely to happen if the trade policy ignites higher and stickier inflation. In the Bank of Japan’s Governor's latest speech, Mr Ueda said that the tariffs are likely to trigger higher inflation. USDJPY Technical Analysis Currently, the Japanese Yen Index is the worst performing of the day while the US Dollar Index is more or less unchanged. However, this is something traders will continue to monitor as the EU session starts. In the 2-hour timeframe, the USDJPY is trading at the neutral level below the 75-bar EMA and 100-bar SMA. The RSI and MACD is also at the neutral level meaning traders should be open to price movements in either direction. On the smaller timeframes, such as the 5-minute timeframe, there is a slight bias towards a bullish outcome. However, this is only likely if the latest bearish swing does not drop below the 200-Bar SMA.     The key resistant level can be seen at 150.262 and the support level at 149.115. Breakout levels are at 149.988 and 149.674. Key Takeaway Points: Job vacancies hit a five-month low, and the ISM Manufacturing PMI missed expectations, adding pressure on the Federal Reserve regarding interest rate decisions. Traders await confirmation on Trump’s tariff policy, which is expected to impact the EU, chips, pharmaceuticals, and foreign car industries. The severity of the tariffs will influence both the JPY and the USD, with traders waiting for final policy details. The Japanese Yen Index is the worst index of the day while the US Dollar Index is unchanged. Always trade with strict risk management. Your capital is the single most important aspect of your trading business.   Please note that times displayed based on local time zone and are from time of writing this report.   Click HERE to access the full HFM Economic calendar.   Want to learn to trade and analyse the markets? Join our webinars and get analysis and trading ideas combined with better understanding of how markets work. Click HERE to register for FREE!   Click HERE to READ more Market news.   Michalis Efthymiou HFMarkets   Disclaimer: This material is provided as a general marketing communication for information purposes only and does not constitute an independent investment research. Nothing in this communication contains, or should be considered as containing, an investment advice or an investment recommendation or a solicitation for the purpose of buying or selling of any financial instrument. All information provided is gathered from reputable sources and any information containing an indication of past performance is not a guarantee or reliable indicator of future performance. Users acknowledge that any investment in Leveraged Products is characterized by a certain degree of uncertainty and that any investment of this nature involves a high level of risk for which the users are solely responsible and liable. We assume no liability for any loss arising from any investment made based on the information provided in this communication. This communication must not be reproduced or further distributed without our prior written permission.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.